Mechanical Messiah
by Primordial Inscriptor Z-09
Summary: Leaving her past behind, our favourite Mechromancer heads to Pandora for a clean slate. However, she will encounter hardships along the way to the Vault that will shape her into the Hero that Pandora needs but doesn't deserve. This is the story of Gaige, a high school drop out from the planet Eden-5 and of the family she stiches together. On Ice.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

**Location: Pandora, Hyperion Wildlife Exploitation Reserve.**

**Date: Approximated Three Years Before The Awakening Of The Warrior.**

**Time: 0500**

"Sir, you can't expect me to put this… thing into a living person!"

"Up-up-up Sammy, hear that? I think that maybe your wife screaming as she's strapped to an operating table within the hour if you don't continue the experiment!"

"Yes… Sir. Commencing Experiment on subject #525."

"Good girl! Maybe I you're good enough, I might even let you have the letters she's been sending"

"Implanting Liquefied Eridium into the test subjects Bone Marrow now."

"GRRRRAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

"Ah, the sweet sound of potential success! Oh Sammy are you crying?"

"L-layering Thyroid gland with powdered Eridium."

"Hey, where's all the screaming- oh, he passed out"

"I-implanting Shock system into the subjects left ventricle."

"Ah yes, the new obedience insurance… HAHAHA"

"Lowering the subject into Skin-Armour Vat."

"Yes, my own little attack dog! You know 'cuz Wilhelm's the big attack dog? HAHAHA!"

"N-now awaiting for r-results-blergh!"

"Aw, did you just vomit? Anyways, good work Sammy. You can leave now, unless you want to stay and see how solidified plasma can make a great-Ah she left! Well, I'll leave her be for now. Bob! Get me the Phase two teams!"

"It's Blake, Sir."

"Bob, Blake, Bloke, same thing… maybe Bloke? Hm…"

"Bob is a wonderful name, sir! I have the Phase two teams behind me, they are ready to… work."

"Alright Bob~ get them working! And make sure to keep my new pet completely restrained!"

"Yes… sir"

**Location: Pandora, Hyperion Wildlife Exploitation Reserve.**

**Date: Approximated One Year Before The Awakening Of The Warrior.**

**Time: 1300**

"Oh GOD, he's escaped! The Armour/Bindings aren't holding it back anymore!"

"What? What's going on? Somebody give me a Sit-Rep!"

"Sir! You won't believe this… but IT is loose!"

"WHAT! That thing has All of Hyperion's bleeding edge tech shoved into it! If Jack finds out…"

"We're screwed"

"No soldier, we aren't. If we can contain it, we'll survive. If we can't… We'll at least be dead before being a lab for his sick mind. Now go inform the rest of the battalion that I want everything we have deployed, and I mean EVERYTHING! I don't care if we have to make an orbital strike, just do it!"

"Yes, Sir!"

"Now, let's see if Jack's little project can survive a missing head…"

**Location: Pandora, Hyperion Wildlife Exploitation Reserve.**

**Date: Approximated One Year Before The Awakening Of The Warrior.**

**Time: 1600**

"… T-this is a c - captain G-graves of the Hyperion security command speaking. If a-anyone receives this m-message…beware t-the number f-five-two-f…."

**Location: Pandora, Wind Shear Wastes.**

**Date: Approximated Eleven Months Before The Awakening Of The Warrior.**

**Time: 1000**

Gaige groaned as she felt her senses return. The first to return were her hearing, her ears picked up nothing but constant fuzzing, much like how a motor sounded when constantly run. Next were her senses of smell, touch, and taste all at once; she breathed in the air and found that it was both dry and tasteless, she wiggled her fingers and found that they stung a bit. Her eyesight returned last, they opened to reveal only white. An endless stream of white.

It was cold and she was lying out in the open in below-freezing temperatures.

Immediately, she curled up into a fetal position to preserve whatever warmth she had left. She tucker her legs in and wrapped it up with her right arm. Her left arm was metallic, so it leeched the warmth of that area. That was one thing she would need to work on…if she ever got out of this alive.

"Great - another dead Vault Hunter. Handsome Jack's been busy" She heard a voice nearby, it sounded bored but mechanical at the same time. But that should not be possible, machines couldn't express their feelings with the current level of technology available. Even an AI as advanced as her Death Trap could only express aggression and calmness by attacking or going into standby, respectively. Curious as to what was the source of such a sound emanated from, Gaige angled her head away from the warmth of her body to get a better view.

It was vaguely square in shape, with spindly arms easily hefting a shovel half its mass over and over. It made digging motions as it grumbled, the single leg it possessed seemed to be a wheel due to the way it retained its shape as the figure moved. It seemed engrossed in its grisly work, digging up body parts and scraps of metal from the wreckage of the train that had been carrying her earlier. The figure turned around-after clearing up the mangled remains- to get more scraps, it instead met eye contact with her.

No pun intended, but it really did have a single glowing eye. There was only one robot model that had such a design…

"Wait a minute - you're not dead! YES! Now I can get off this glacier! Claptrap, your metaphorical ship has finally come in!"

A Claptrap, one of the most annoying pieces of engineering ever built by man. Their single purpose seemed to simply annoy people within hearing range due to their perpetual one-sided and useless discussions with conversations with any human in range. They would latch onto any form of give and simply talk as they worked on any maintenance or diagnostic issues. The only reason they had been used so commonly was due to their bullet proof-except their eyes- armor, exceptionally high standards of work, easy-to-repair nature with their on-board repair kits and extremely advanced-but very vulnerable- visual sensors.

"Allow me to introduce myself - I am a CL4P-TP steward bot, but my friends call me Claptrap!"

All of their awesome hardware were off-set by their more prominent cons. They were as obviously annoying as hell. They were laughably easy to hack. They ran at the first sight of danger, complete cowards. They were clumsy at moving around. They couldn't hold weapons properly. Finally, they couldn't climb stairs. Nobody would ever put up with one if they weren't so darn good with their jobs.

That was a Claptrap unit. Gaige felt her inner Mechromancer itching to dissect, upgrade and hug the adorably cute little robot all at the same time.

"Or they would, if any of them were still alive. Or had existed in the first place! Oh - I've got something for you."

Apparently, it was also easily distracted. The spindly arms of the robot rummaged through one of the bodies that it had dug up, procuring what seemed like an ECHO device. It held it out for her.

"Here - take this ECHO communicator that I totally didn't loot from one of these corpses! It comes with a class-twelve heads-up display, complete with a minimap! Now – come, come, friend. Let's get you inside."

Naturally, she took the strangely blank device and seamlessly integrated it into her robotic arm. She saw the little robot's glowing, blue eyes lingering at the robotic arm for a second too long. If it were human, she would have called the expression longing or even nostalgia.

(ECHO communicator: BOOT SEQUENCE INITIATED)  
(ECHO communicator: INITIALIZING… HEALTH DISPLAY MODULE)  
(ECHO communicator: INITIALIZING… EXPERIENCE POINT MODULE)  
(ECHO communicator: INITIALIZING… DIGITAL MAP MODULE)

The Three-Dimensional holograms came to life around her head, arranging itself to be perpetually in the corner of her vision, but close enough to be aware of the holographic constructs. Her Health bar was flashing dangerously low.

Immediately, she forced herself into a standing position to get the blood flowing. The little robot apparently took this as a sign that she was ok and began rolling away, rambling as it did so. She had no choice but to follow, not if she wanted to freeze out in the open

"Man, this is great! Now that I've met a mighty Vault Hunter, I can finally join the resistance in Sanctuary, take vengeance against Jack for killing my product line, and repair my central processor so I stop thinking out loud! I wonder what it's like to have a belly button."

She wanted to speak, to tell the claptrap to slow down. Her body felt slow and cumbersome, she'd catch up, eventually. It took all her will power to just keep moving, and finally she felt a dizziness sweeping over her, blurring images into a fuzz until an image remained.

She looked like an angel…

"I'll explain everything soon, but know this – you're alive for a reason, and I… am here to help you."

Her body felt so heavy. Her energy was leaving her tired form rapidly. She could see a misshapen Igloo a few meters up ahead with a metal door and security panel wired to it. That was shelter, which was where the warmth was.

"Well done! Your ability to walk short distances without dying will surely be Handsome Jack's downfall!

The little robot wheeled itself over to the scanner, allowing the security system to identify it as its owner. At the same time Gaige glanced down to her health bar, where only a sliver of the originally tiny amount remained. It decreased a bit more as the door opened.

"Aaaaaand open!"

Finally, she felt a rushing warmth. Smiling, her legs gave and she collapsed in both exhaustion and potential hypothermia from the extreme environment. In her exhaustion, she felt something take hold of her, but she was too tired to care. She just wanted to rest a bit longer.

Gaige was no longer conscious.

"Just a little added security. Gotta keep those Bullymongs at bay, or they'll rip your eyes out!" Claptrap whirled around, expecting to find the Vault hunter rudely barging past him into his home (Brick), toss him aside with a flick (Lilith), use him as a perch and beer table (Blood wing and Mordecai), or a weapons rack (Roland). Instead of an over-powered form Vault hunter he'd assumed he escorted to do just another mission, all he saw was a vulnerable human girl shivering on the ground just outside his doorstep. He gave a heavy sigh, "I guess she's cold"

In a surprising show of strength, Claptrap hefted the human over his flat top and dragged her within the warm confines of the igloo. She was then placed on a couch nearby the roaring fireplace and a particularly thick blanket of Bullymong fur wrapped around her shivering form. His processors concluded that she might feel better if she had company. After all, what human didn't crave companionship? That was its primary programming after all…

"Sorry about the mess. Everything Jack kills, he dumps here – bandits, Vault Hunters, Claptrap units… If I sound pleased about this, it's only because my programmers made this my default tone of voice! I'm actually quite depressed!"

Claptrap knew the human couldn't hear it, she was in a deep sleep. Her heart rate indicated she was near a comatose state, and would've been if he had been even a minute longer in delaying her rescue. Her body temperature was dangerously low and the mechanical arm didn't help much due to its excellent thermal conductivity actually sapping heat away from the main body that actually needed it.

It rambled on as it took the metallic arm out and exposed as much of it to the fireplace without exposing the human's already cold body. Hopefully it would help in restoring her body heat.

"Now, the creatures around here are dangerous, none more so than this Bullymong named Knuckle Dragger – killed everyone I know. Anyhow, I keep a pistol in the cabinet over there for emergencies, but in here, we should be pretty safe!"

Claptrap looked up, where a vision of a solidly built roof of an igloo met its optics. Despite the mess, the walls of the Icy structure were solid after having melted and solidified into its current shape by both the fireplace and the ambient temperatures. It kept things toasty, and it had one individual to thank for it.

It originally wanted to run to Sanctuary upon first discovering its benefactor, but it had silently insisted on staying in the igloo, which had become an impenetrable warm haven after a few weeks of waiting. If it wanted to stay, then so would it. Claptrap models were far too useless in combat currently to properly defend themselves in an event of an attack. Now, the time to leave was nearly there, it could feel something telling its processors to anticipate the arrival of this very specific human.

It would not let this chance slip away.

"We'll need more Bullymong fur." This statement was as final as an order. A large figure lurched from its hiding spot, its long, ragged cloak acting as a worn curtain rather well. The figure went out its own exit, it was far too large for the normal door anyway. As it walked into the undying storm, Claptrap turned to see the familiar Hyperion White-gold of its armored boots crunching through ice outside. Then it was gone, a phantom disappearing into the eternal white outside. The little bot wasn't worried though, the figure had more than proved an asset. The massive store of Bullymong meat at the back proved that much at least.

Now was the hard part.

"I hate waiting"

Gaige felt the world around her returning. Unlike before, however, it was the smell of something cooking as well as something soft wrapped around her kept her very cozy. She wanted a few more minutes, she didn't have to go to school today. It was a weekend right? Yes, that had to be it, the science fair was on Friday, so Saturday was a free day to work on Death Trap on her leisure…

Gaige burst from her comfort zone, the events of the entire episode coming back to her with vengeance like a roaring tsunami. Her body sat up ram-rod straight and stiff, her arms warmed up and ready to- hold on, warm?

She blinked, taking in her surroundings with a deliberate slowness. The walls were made from solid, well-formed ice. The floor had piles of assorted junk lining the edges, from neat lines of off-line Claptraps to iced over-but well preserved-corpses. The Claptrap itself was near the fire place, its spindly arms having trouble stirring the sweet-smelling broth that had awoken her earlier. She noticed that she was laying on a patched up couch while wrapped up an in extremely soft and fuzzy blanket.

"Oh, awesome! You're awake!" The little robot exclaimed as it turned around, taking the spoon it was stirring the broth with on a spin. The hot soup splashed across Gaige's face and she twisted her face in surprise. Her pain tolerance was much too high for something like a scalding drop of soup to trigger any pain. Instead, she licked it off. The little robot seemed sheepish, bowing its body and lowering its tone "Oops, he he?"

"It's good-" She barely croaked out the words before hacking and coughing in pain. Her throat was extremely dry, so much that there was not even saliva in her mouth to swallow. As she continued to cough, the little bot quickly took a wooden bowl and spoon from hammer-space and poured some soup into it before shoving the first volume of fluid down her parched throat. It kept shoveling the soup down her throat until she had enough. "Stop it already, I can feed myself!"

"It's good to know that you can talk again. Please help yourself to the broth, it contains whatever nutrients your body needs in order to recover." The Claptrap placed the spoon into the bowl and into the stunned human's hands. The girl transferred the bowl to her mechanical left arm and felt her neck with the other. She turned to the little bot and smiled.

"Thank you"

Claptrap hid his excitement well as he spoke. In all his years of service, no-one, had _ever_ given him thanks for what he did. She was the first to give him the one thing that the Robo-volution had failed to achieve, it decided she would be put first before its own life. She had given it, the last Claptrap, respect.

It decided it would give its life to her should the time ever come to pass.

"You ok? You froze up for a bit. I can make some upgrades-"

"I'm fine! Never been better" The cheerful inflection in its voice somehow amplified "You should rest though, It's a long way to the Crimson Raiders."

"Crimson Raiders?"

"Yeah, I'll fill you in when you get better. I Promise!"

"Alright! But if you don't…I've got tools I've been dying to test on a Hyperion Robot." The combination of the mischievous glint in her emerald orbs as well as her smooth, malicious tone sent the little bot's survival programs into overdrive.

"Yes!" it squeaked before wheeling off to its hidey hole somewhere within the ice fortress.

Gaige grinned before biting back a yelp from a torn lip. It seemed that she really needed some fluids in her. That wasn't a problem though, a whole lot of the sweet broth awaited to be consumed by her.

"You know, for a clumsy little 'bot it sure knows how to whip up a good meal!"

The human then proceeded to devour the broth, unaware of a massive figure observing her from within the walls of the igloo as she ate.

**A/N: This is my new meme! I'm sorry to all of you who followed my SIS or/and SotG stories! I'm on a writers block for them and hope that this will satiate your thirst for story telling. If you are new to my stories, don't be afraid to check out my other stories! Later!**

**Review Please! It will help me with any problems that I may have missed! Your voice counts!**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

**Location: Pandora, Wind Shear Wastes.**

**Date: Approximated Eleven Months Before The Awakening Of The Warrior.**

**Time: 1800**

It's been hours since the Mechromancer last finished her meal, now she felt quite revitalized, if a bit dry around the lips. Slight dehydration as a result of a near comatose state was nothing some melted snow couldn't fix. She was almost ready to call in Claptrap and tell it she was ready, until she remembered something.

Her metal arm.

Gaige frowned. As helpful as it had been, she really needed to insulate it somehow to prevent it from sapping any more of her body heat in the future should she ever need to venture out into colder climates. She looked around the igloo for parts, but only saw broken Claptrap models. She cringed, she knew that they neither contained the parts she needed for the designs she had in mind, nor would Claptrap appreciate the sight of his fallen brethren being disassembled.

She glanced at the blanket that she was currently wrapped up in. The materials were perfect to form an insulating layer over her metallic arm, it would be so easy to tear a piece and wrap it around her arm, but…

Her arms wrapped around the blanket, the large, furry quilt becoming a treasured object within hours of use. It provided warmth and comfort as she was freezing, and that moved to a level just below her beloved Death Trap. Come to think of it, maybe she could add the fur quilt to DT as an upgrade. Then she could have both her favourite things at once! It seemed like a great idea, but there was the lack of proper salvageable equipment to achieve that dream.

Sanctuary would probably have the proper tools.

Nodding to herself, Gaige decided upon a course of action.

"Hey Claptrap! I'm ready to go!"

Claptrap wheeled into the human's line of sight as soon as he heard her give him confirmation her status. It observed as she stored the [Quilt of Bullymong Fur] into her SDU, it's estimated that the material took up 2 slots by itself. That left 10 slots available in her inventory and 2 more weapons in her Equipped SDU, the unmodified, standard issued SDU.

"Ah, finally! I was thinking that these wheels were going to rust off with all the waiting you've been doing! Then again we're headed to Sanctuary, so Scooter's bound to have some oil laying around somewhere there…"

Claptrap saw the human approach, having hopped off the couch and landing perfectly balanced despite her rather short stature. She then proceeded to forcefully grab hold of its antenna. The little robot immediately stopped its rambling programs.

"Claptrap, you do remember that you promised to tell me about Sanctuary once I've recovered right?" She moved the surprisingly stiff antenna around, the little bot quickly wheeling around to match the movement. The little bot didn't respond other than to keep its antenna from bending by wheeling to the direction she shifted it in her hands in. She got the feeling that the object in her hands was something extremely sensitive to Claptrap units, given that the unit in question had immediately locked up upon contact. Slowly, she released her hold on the antenna.

"That… was an unpleasant experience." The robots tone was small and dull, lacking the exuberant personality that it had exhibited earlier. Suddenly, it wheeled within the girl's personal space screaming as loud as its vocal emitters would allow. "PSYCHE! Ha-ha, you should've seen the look on your face! Priceless!"

"Claptrap! I really thought you were damaged!" Gaige yelled angrily once she had overcome her shock. "Maybe I really should damage you so I can be legitimately worried…"

"Err, no thanks! Anyway, why don't I tell you about Sanctuary! It's this little squat hole-"

"Eeep!"

Claptraps' distractive rant was cut off by a high-pitched yelp coming from the human, her features contorting from surprised to fear within moments of its eye observing her. Her gaze was fixed to the wall behind him, a particular spot that he was quite familiar with. His benefactor's hiding spot. It turned to observe what exactly had caused the reaction.

Looming over the pair at nearly twice the cowering human's full height, the hunched figure was wrapped in a patchy, full cloak of rather dirty Bullymong fur. The only visible parts were the feet, which were heavily armoured in the faded Hyperion colorations of gold and white. Slung across its back was- an obviously dead- Bullymong of massive proportions with sharpened spikes protruding from its knuckles.

Knuckle Dagger was dead.

"Minion! You're back, and you've brought Knuckle Dagger back with you! Ah, such a joyous day indeed!" As Claptrap continued to cheer at the prospect of retaining his eye, Gaige stood still at something larger than Death Trap. The Massive Bullymong was dropped to the floor icy floor, its sheer weight reverberating throughout the structure.

"The blood rage awaits for none of the peaceful to carry out the carnage" It spoke, but its voice seemed wrong. Like a person speaking through a gas mask, but modulated by a machine. The words also didn't make sense, like the ravings of a Maniac psycho in a calm tone.

She wished she had the courage to summon Death Trap right now, but her fear had frozen her to the spot. Oh sure some of her fear had to do with the sheer size difference between the two, but it mostly emanated from the vicious-but dead-looking Bullymong laying at her feet. The dead Bullymong practically oozed danger even in death, she didn't want to know how terrible it must've been when it was alive and roaming.

And to think that this looming figure took it out. Unbelievable.

"Oh, hey 'Vault Hunter' don't worry, that's just his way of saying the path is clear of Bullymongs." Claptrap wiggles its claws as it said the words 'Vault Hunter' to her. It then proceeded to wheel on top of the dead Bullymong and move in an up-down motion "HA, take that you apes! No more tearing out eyes for you! Tea-bag time Ha-Ha-Ha!"

Quickly annoyed by Claptraps constant bragging, Gaige quickly snapped out from her terror-induced stupor and into an expression of annoyance. Her right arm reached to the wrench in her ankle-fitted tool belt, took out the said tool, and swiftly tapped the robot's flat top.

"Ouch! Hey-!" Claptrap clutched its top as if in pain. It looked to complain, before an annoyed glare from the Mechromancer shut him up.

"Claptrap" She began calmly, trying her best to avoid contact with the crazed giant in front of her by focusing it on the little robot. "What is that?

"Oh, that's just my super tough minion and advisor! Took great care of me and gives me great advice!"

"Advice?" Gaige felt an eyebrow rise at the prospect of the nonsensical giant giving any sort of advice.

"Yeah, sure! When he first came to me, I wanted to immediately want to go to Sanctuary! But the big guy over here wanted to wait for someone in here, so I let him. We've been here ever since!" Claptrap turned and hugged its minion's leg "Minion here has been quite lazy during the stay here other than fixing the hole in the roof, and hunting those eye-tearing Bullymongs, otherwise, Minion's always lazing around in that corner of his day-in and day-out"

"It's time to make a Jack-of-all-Axes. My veins shivers with pain!"

Again with that 'wrong' voice. It sounded like a deranged human psycho trapped in a body of a robot and restrained with the cold logic of one. If only it communicated in a way she could understand.

"Oh, he said he's really excited to brain Handsome Jack with a really, really nasty axe in a needlessly violent manner." Claptraps casual translation earned him a blank stare from Gaige. "What, I've been living with Minion for almost a month! Of course I'd know what he's talking about!"

Gaige resisted the urge to pinch the bridge of her nose in exasperation, the only median of communication between a giant robot capable of offing an elder Bullymong and the rest of the world, was a Claptrap? Maybe she could get Death Trap out and make a translation software from their interactions? Then again, she hadn't even made one for Death Trap yet. She made a mental note to do so, once they reached Sanctuary.

It was then that 'Minion' decided to vocalize its intent. "The flame needs to burn with pain before we have no more pain in Sanctuary, but take glasses-brain with us!

"You said it Minion! Charge!" Claptrap agreed, Gaige having little to no idea as to what they were discussing. The larger figure took point while Gaige and Claptrap stayed close behind. The little bot shifted closer to Gaige, tugging at her bracelet to get her attention. She complied by tilting her neck to look at the little robot. "I should probably tell you what he meant. First, were going to meet Sir Hammerlock-a good friend of mine-in Liar's Berg then we need to get to my totally awesome ship and sail to Sanctuary."

"You have a ship?" She couldn't help but ask it. Even though Claptrap units were known to brag, there was always some truth that they expanded based it on at first. The possibility of a ship and Sir Hammerlock existing was highly likely, but whether the ship belonged to Claptrap or Sir Hammerlock actually being the little robots 'good friend' remained a very low probability.

After sliding down a few frozen slopes and climbing one more, the trio reached a sealed metal barge. A scanner not unlike the one in Claptrap's place resided beside the door. "Liar's Berg's on the other side of this Hyperion barge. What say we cut through it, chum?" The little robot confidently wheeled towards it, the scanner proceeding to activate and scan the little robot. "HA! This door's Hyperion tech – child's play! Aaaaaaand OPEN!"

"Unauthorized personnel detected, please verify access with a nearby authorized Hyperion Personnel"

"Well, at least we didn't get locked out." Claptrap shrugged, before turning to their third companion "Minion! It's your turn to stand there!

The two then watched in astonishment as the scanner did its work. "Hyperion Administrative Access Detected, Access Granted. Have A Nice Day!"

"Who exactly are you!?" Gaige couldn't help but point at the giant, she regretted it almost immediately after though as he began rambling with a volume like a megaphone.

"I'll never forget the way her holes cried... The way she screamed in agony as she pushed the knife slowly into my sternum... Such a beautiful symphony of feelings, and at the end of it, she was so much greater! My operatic diva of flesh and steel! Somebody open me up and put out the fire in my belly... It will never end. The blood, the screaming, and the teeth, it will start again and again and again, forever! The Purple fluids flow like silver powder within my burning bones! Cold mirrors threaten my skin with protection, It won't CUT! IT WON'T CUT! IT WON'T CUT!"

Gaige ended up plunging her pinkies into her ear canals and squeezing her eyes shut to block off the insane ramblings. However, she managed to hear through the primitive counter measures she put up. All she heard could be summed in one word: Crazy.

Once she was sure that the ramblings had ceased, she released the physical blocks on her sensory organs. Just hearing it make her dizzy, and she didn't even know what most of it meant! Another mental note: make earplugs. She turned to Claptrap. "Hey Claptrap, you understood what he just said?"

The steward bot sat in silence for a few moments before promptly ignoring by wheeling into the barge "Lemme know when you're ready to go meet with Sir Hammerlock, 'Vault Hunter'!"

Unknown to Gaige though, the ramblings had already been discretely recorded by a certain captive siren. This message was replayed repeatedly before being completely decoded. A pair of eyes emitting a soft glow of power widened in realization. She absolutely could not allow Jack to think that his 'pet' project somehow survived being nuked from orbit. She would do all she can to hinder observation while misleading the power-hungry man all she could. It would be a difficult task, but she was prepared.

Jack could NOT know. Ever.

So, deep within Thousand Cuts, The Angel prepared a miracle.

"Hey Claptrap! Stop ignoring me and answer the god damned question!"

Her rage apparently had little effect on whatever happened to the steward bot as it showed her a weapon box, which revealed an extremely crappy pistol. No really, her ECHO unit identified it as [White] [bAndiT crpY pisTaL]. To make matters worse, all the ammo scattered throughout the room was anything BUT Pistol Ammo.

"I'm sorry 'Vault Hunter', but it seems that the memories of the last 5 minutes were remotely deleted." It confessed, so it had really been hacked by an unknown? "However, the hacker has assured me that it will ONLY delete similar files, so I am definitely not compromised.

Gaige could only sigh at Claptrap's stupidity. Now another thing to add to her ever growing list of upgrades to apply once she got to Sanctuary. "Its fine Claptrap, but I can't even use this crappy pistol-say, do you have an adhesive?"

"Uh, sure?" Gaige's frustrated expression quickly turned into that of contemplation, before switching to glee. The steward bot handed her a roll of duct tape from its SDU, which Gaige gleefully took from the robots hands.

The Mechromancer went to work, quickly taking the two of the sharpest scraps of metal she could find and wrapping them up on either side of the weapon's barrel. The duct tape wrappings would hinder the aiming reticule, but that didn't matter, it's not like she would use it to fire off any rounds any way. All she had to do was get in close to any enemy and use the enhanced strength of her robotic arm to move in for the ki-

Suddenly, she felt nauseous. Bile rose to her throat and she collapsed in a coughing fit, the bladed pistol tossed from her grip like some poisoned object. She began dry heaving, tears welling up in her eyes as she did so.

The cause?

It was simple really, for all Gaige's intelligence and aptitude with WMD (e.g. DT), she was still a 15-year old girl who had felt incredibly guilty for ending the life of her rival (even if it was Marcie's fault to begin with), escaped with the help of her loving father, and never consciously made an actual lethal weapon before.

The one that had changed the relatively harmless gun into an instrument of violence wasn't Gaige, it was the Mechromancer in her.

Claptrap watched impassively as the human spasmed, the sudden shift in her actions being completely illogical and therefore not within its ability to respond. She was obviously in great distress, but its processors could not comprehend just what has triggered the sudden fit.

Earlier, the human had displayed intuitive innovation by changing an extremely poor ranged weapon into a slightly more effective melee weapon with minimal materials. It was a brilliant move on her part, so why did she throw away the makeshift weapon? Despite its lacklustre quality, it had to be more effective in defending herself than simply going in unarmed, right?

It observed for several minutes longer before concluding that it needed a slightly different perspective. Its single, cycloptic lens shifted to the only other figure in the room before going back to observing the pained human.

"Hello? We need to go 'Vault Hunter'! The longer we stay here, the more time Jack has to find us and melt ME down!" It waved its arms out, executing its core programming to snap the human out of her trance, but it didn't work. She was in too deep to snap out of, it gave the other individual the go-ahead. "Minion…carry her."

The cloaked giant complied, its metallic boots making sharp clanking noises as it shifted its centre of balance to pick the girl up. Claptrap observed as the left metal-encased arm appeared from within the robes: It was much thicker than the spindly arms of a Loader, and much more fleshed out than that of an Architect's Exoskeleton as well. The Hyperon themed armour plating had a strange texture to it, almost as if it were ridged in curving patters, which was impossible due to Hyperion's partiality for sharp and angular designs, right? If the ridges were miniscule Eridian script however…

"The little one weeps a beautiful symphony of pain, an instrument of smiling blood trapped within the womb of the unborn Meister, the silence hurts dead deaf." With a single motion, the curled up human girl was scooped up and lost within the figure's robes, "Let the painful fire be fed your bloody hatred, so as to make the warmth and solitude real."

"Right Minion! Let's show go grab Sir Hammerlock, Kill Flynt and sail to Sanctuary! Charge!" As Claptrap got caught up in its own excitement, it overlooked the fact that it was at least a dozen feet above ground upon exiting the Hyperion Bunker. Upon charging out of the bunker, it promptly fell into the soft snow a dozen meters below it. "Ouch"

Several seconds passed before Claptrap's 'Minion' landed beside the buried bot, and pulled it out by its wheel-feet with its now-less bulky left arm. Unfortunately, Claptrap let out a ridiculously loud cry of surprise upon release, attracting the nearby Bullymongs from their icy nests.

Claptrap had only moments to realize the situation that they were in before being tossed aside. As it was once more blinded by the snow covering its optics, it only heard the 'battle' occur, "The cold skin needs to be warm...GIVE ME YOURS!"

And then, the only sounds after several seconds were pained howls from crippled Bullymongs.

**A/N: Yay, Second Chapter is out! Is it too fast or too slow? Do you guys want to see the fighting scenes now? Or wait it out? Lemme Know what you all think!**

**P.S. If you can guess just what our mysterious character is actually saying, I'll give you Brownie Points!**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

**A/N: So far, this story has had only one steady reviewer. Hey Thanks to you ****Chewie Cookies****! For your support! It has spurned me on to make even more chapters. And you other guys that don't review, I don't mind. The fact that you favorite the story despite it not being the category you are used to really warms my heart! So I look forward to your future voices!**

**To ****michael the mecromaster****: Ha, even if he did, she already has one that she's rather attached to the point where she can carry less guns because of it.**

**To ****theprincedonte****: Don't worry, the others will join in on their own accord. Sanctuary's citizens will make sure Claptrap recovers them. **

**To ****Chewie Cookies****: Thanks for your continued support!**

**Location: Pandora, Dr. Zed's**

**Date: Approximated Ten Months and 29 Days Before The Awakening Of The Warrior**

"…found her with Claptrap of all things. Maybe Roland can…"

Gaige felt herself dropping in and out of consciousness, several voices surrounded her as she awoke, only to be replaced moment later with another voice.

"…poor dear's in shock, and judging by how young she is, I can probably assume that…"

"…too dangerous! Didn't you see those Hyperion colors flying under that…? "

"…priority is to find Roland! Without him we might as well let Jack walk right into Sanctuary for all it mattered!

Noticing that it was the first sentence she finished hearing, Gaige assumed that she was more awake than asleep at this point. Deciding to see just what the ruckus was all about, Gaige snapped her eyes open.

…and immediately closed them again, hoping the sight that greeted her would simply go away.

"Oh hey there Kiddo! Raise and Shine eh?" It was male, with a voice that seemed to drawl on the 'a's while blending the 'e's and the 'a's into one sound. It sounded totally friendly, but the environment was like something out of a horror video. "Eh? Ain't 'ya gonna at least say 'Hi' to good 'ol Dr. Zed from patching 'ya up? Don't worry though, we're in Sanctuary, none of the folks around here will, um, harm 'ya"

Sanctuary? Just how long had she been out for? The last thing she remembered was hurling her guts out just before the Southern Shelf…

Taking a deep breath, Gaige mentally prepared herself for the sight she was to behold. It would be rude to simply ignore someone, especially if it was a doctor that had potentially cared for her during the unknown amount of time she'd remained unconscious. She had to at least thank him.

Gaige sat upright with opened eyes staring into the surprised face of the Doctor that had treated her. The world slowed as she observed the good doctor, he appeared to be a man in his late-thirties, with slicked back greying hair and stubble. Most of the lower half of his face was covered in a surgical mask. He wore a white shirt, with a sea-green surgical overall covering everything but his brown pants and boots, this overall had a "My name is Dr. Zed" on the left chest, while below was a canister of unknown liquid. Years of practicing his craft had left the doctor decently muscled and well-toned where she could see. He looked every bit the medical professional his title said he was, if a bit dirty from recent operations. Except that…

…except for the sheer volume of dried blood that coated the lime-green walls of the clinic, the hacked off limbs of people lining his shelf, and what appeared to be an extremely wicked buzz-axe laying on the table usually reserved for surgical tools. She then pinched her nose in disgust when a draft of air pushed a nasty odor towards her. Oddly, it overpowered the terror of seeing the gory surgical room. "Yuck! What's that smell?"

Dr. Zed blinked in surprise before turning around to yell something in an incomprehensible accent to an unseen person. Once done, he turned back with evidence of a smile behind his mask. "Sorry 'bout that, darn greenhorns don't know how to handle bodies without rupturin' a gall bladder or somethin'." The Doctor grimaced, before he then rummaged through a pocket she hadn't noticed during her initial observation. With one gloved hand, he produced a surgical mask identical to the one that he currently wore, except it was in a pristine condition. "Was savin' this one for a special occasion, but I think a little lassie like yourself need it more than me!"

Gaige smiled, delighted at the gift. She did not hesitate to put it on, immediately feeling the filtering effects of the mask kicking in. "Thanks Doc!"

"Not a problem, but you'd better head to Moxxi's place right away. That woman's been badgering me nonstop to get you up and running to her! It's on the other side of town with a large neon sign "Moxxi's" on it, can't miss it."

"Thanks Dr. Zed! I'm off then!" Gaige hopped off the bed she'd laid in, and on the floor. It was disorienting a first, most likely due to the lack in physical activity and slightly atrophied muscles. She'd take it easy for now.

"You're welcome! But I'm ain't a real Doctor, I ain't got a medical license!"

Now _that_ statement made Gaige pale and stumble slightly, but she hid it behind a smiling façade. Even if he wasn't certified, she felt a lot better, so he at least knew what he was doing. She put _that _thought at the back of her mind as she made her way to Moxxi's.

True to the –not so-Doctor's word, she saw a bright "Moxxi's" sign flashing over a rather wide, but dingy building. Not to judge on outer appearance (Marcie), Gaige walked onto the rather sanitary bar. It was well lit, with two lottery machines to the left of the entrance, a row of tables for drinkers to her right, and a wide serving table with a rather buxom woman wiping down it deeper in. The woman looked up- probably at the sound of her footsteps entering- and simply beamed.

"Ah, you're finally awake sweetie!" She called rather excitedly, before opening a small passage to allow entrance into her side of the serving table "Why don't you come over her so we can talk, Hmm?"

Gaige knew she was safe in Sanctuary- she trusted Dr. Zed, even if he wasn't a real Doctor- and had nothing else better to do, so she complied.

Upon entering the restricted area, Gaige has to reassess her initial view on the woman when in such close proximity to the woman. She was fairly tall, standing a full head over her at least. She wore a mismatching pair of stockings: on her right leg was a torn fish-net stocking, while a black-white striped one adorned her left leg, her high heels were surprisingly plain. She wore a purple Parade Conductor Uniform modified to contain her buxom figure quite snuggly: Its wrist and neck cuffs were elongated and striped black-white, a tarp of fabric hung from loosely at the end, preserving her modesty form the front and back, but doing nothing to hide her exposed hips, underwear and all. Her headwear consisted of a purple top-hat with a black-white fabric holding a Queen of Hearts card on the left side.

Despite the woman's amazing allure, there were signs that she was not just a pretty face. Her hands had leather gloves with small holes that would allow her to quickly fit in metal knuckles for hard blows, a holster with the words 'Ruby' inscribed into it was fitted to her left thigh, a diagonal belt across her waist somewhat concealing it, as well as choker with some sort of device attached to it. This woman was-

"Like what you see sweet'ums?" Gaige's observation was interrupted by the woman's sudden comment. "Don't worry honey-plum, you can look all you want later. Right now we need to talk. Name's Moxxie if you haven't guessed already."

"I'm Gaige, the M-Mechromancer," The woman's tone went from light and playful to dead serious, it unnerved the Mechromancer just how fast Moxxie could change her persona. Gaige did her best to keep her voice steady.

"I know pumpkin-cheeks, you kept mumbling 'I'm Gaige, no one else!' in your sleep when I visited you at Dr. Zed's, and I hope it wasn't a nightmare?" Moxxie's consoling tone made Gaige want to tell her all about her fears, her… trauma before the Southern Shelf. "Don't worry, as I said, we've got time later. Right now, we've got to talk about your companions: that 'enthusiastic' little Claptrap and that hulking silent one that the Claptrap keep referring to as its 'minion', both of which are of Hyperion make."

"I see-" Gaige began halfheartedly.

"No, you don't, dearie, "Moxxy was somehow both firm and tender in what she said, "You must understand honey, that this is Sanctuary: Home of the Crimson Raiders, a resistance force that fights Hyperion tooth and nail for every inch of Pandora. It's their last stronghold. None of us here hates Hyperion directly, but it's the person running the business that has reduced us to this pathetic state."

"Handsome Jack" Gaige breathed, Moxxie nodded seriously, "Then when you said 'us', are you…?"

"I have my own reasons for hating that Power-Starved, Psychotic Trillionaire," The finality in her tone and darkened expression warned Gaige to not press farther on the issue. She seemed to soften though upon seeing the girl's frightened expression "Sorry 'bout that honey-bear, it's… been hard"

"Um… okay, so back on topic then. What about Claptrap and 'Minion'? They really helped me back when I got ejected from that exploding train at the Wind Shear Wastes. I wouldn't even be alive right now if they hadn't taken care of me back there."

"I see, this is getting complicated fast…" She folded her arms and pinched the bridge of her nose, "Sweetie? Can you promise not to freak out?"

"Um…Okay?"

"No Gaige, I want you to promise me!" Her stern tone indicated no nonsense, she was serious.

"I… promise not to freak out" Gaige went along with it. If it was important enough for a pleasant-looking woman to get so worked up over, then it must have been really important. Besides, she didn't want to get on Moxxie's bad side.

"Alright then, Follow me" Moxxie moved to exit the bar, Gaige followed close behind, feeling safe near the Buxom lady. She then shouted to the silent streets outside "We're closed!"

They moved through the unfamiliar winds of the street, Gaige close enough for her to feel like Moxxie was invading _her _personal space rather than the other way around. They made great time, she counted only fifteen seconds before she ran into and bounced off the woman's well-toned body. They were now in what seemed to be the town center, a tall structure centered in the area empty clearing of concrete, as well as a familiar figure.

Several resistance fighters in mix-matched pieces of armor surrounded a single cowering Claptrap, Corrosive weapons pointed directly onto the tough body of the robot, it wouldn't stand a chance. Gaige fought the urge to panic, remembering the promise that she had made to Moxxi earlier. One of the soldiers came up to the Moxxi, before saluting.

"Ma'am, we have the Hyperion Asset ready to be eliminated!"

"I see, but isn't even a single gun just Over-kill for any Claptrap?" Moxxi asked, this caused the soldier to look back at the compacted and shivering form of Claptrap. Honestly, it was really a pathetic sight to behold.

"I'm not sure if you were there at the time ma'am, but once upon a time, these guys staged a revolution. Almost succeeded too if it weren't for Commander Roland and his friends. I was with the Lance at the time, watched my buddy get gunned down by a Claptrap. I think they called it a Robo-something?"

_"We are the claptraps and we are legion! Viva la Robolution, you ignorant flesh bag!" _The sudden cry turned all heads to the Claptrap, who was no longer cowering. It was fully extended with one spindly arms stretched out, while the other covered its chest. The pose actually seemed dignified for a moment… before its cowardly personality kicked in. "Oh crap"

The declaration was apparently enough to incite the mob's physical wrath. Apparently, they felt much better observing a screaming Claptrap as it took non-existent damage from unarmed trikes.

Gaige moved to help the abused robot, but Moxxie held her behind with an outstretched arm. She couldn't see the woman's expression, but if she had to guess, it would be one of exasperation. "Let them blow off some steam, that Claptrap is either a lot smarter than it looks or too idiotic to keep its mouth shut. Either way, this situation will resolve itself soon enough. But that's only half the problem"

"Half?"

"Yes, let me show you" Gaige automatically began following the woman away the riot, Claptrap was currently being strung up by its leg-wheel and batted around like a piñata by the butt of numerous rifles. She knew that the robot could take cannon-fire at point blank range and survive with little to no damage, but it still made her heart ache at seeing any sort of mechanical device treated with such brutality. She was a Mechromancer, which meant that she emphasized with any and all forms of technology. "It's just outside Sanctuary, we're almost there."

True to her word, they reached the towering metal gates after a brisk walk, but not before Moxxie scolded a slacking guard like a small child "Private Jessup, look alive! If the Jack or the bandits see you like this, they'll think we're easy prey! The people of Sanctuary are counting on you to protect them… Roland's counting on you"

"Yes Ma'am!" The previously slacking guard was now upright and actually looked threatening at the mention of 'Roland', whoever that person was must have been a really great guy to motivate a person with but a mention of his name. The soldier spared her a moment's glance before returning to a stoic position "I'll open the gates for you right away, Ma'am."

"Good, see that you keep up this standard, soldier. I know Roland would be proud to have people like you in within the ranks of the Crimson Raiders" Passing through the impressive, metal gates of sanctuary, Moxxie turned her attention to Gaige. "As you're well aware, the people here aren't very fond of any form of Hyperion assets. That Claptrap was fortunate enough to have strong a reputation as an annoying smart-alek, but generally harmless steward-bot due to the numerous Claptraps populating Pandora up till a few years ago."

"Where did they all go?"

"I don't know all the details, but you should ask that Claptrap when you have the time," A simple turn to the right led them both to a deserted slums area. There were numerous shacks built with little planning, save a roof, many of which were just leaning on each other for structural support, and even those relied on Sanctuary's walls to stay stable. The shacks formed a semi-circle, with a clearing in the middle and a measly wooden fence to warn off smaller wild life a farther up, which they were using as an entrance. "We're here, you can come out now"

Gaige knew that first part was intended for her, but who did she say that last part for?

"Is there really anybody here at all? It seems abandoned…"

"Heh, ironic really. This was actually a dwelling for several dozen bandits, where residents were 'persuaded' to just a few hours ago" Moxxie let loose an amused chuckle "Now this dirty nest has only a single resident in it."

Her arm lifted to point directly into the center of the camp, and Gaige followed the gaze to see a large tent that she swore hadn't been there earlier. It was a small dwelling that could barely contain the two women should they ever attempt to squeeze inside. Gaige turned to her taller companion, confusion tattooed to her adolescent features. "That small thing? Someone's staying there? That can barely hold me comfortably! How any person stay in there, when they can use a dwelling right behind it?"

"Honey, I don't think you understand the situation. I'm not telling you that someone is living there." Suddenly, the strange tent began to shift in unnerving angles. "I'm telling you that our second problem lives is sitting right there."

"What…" Gaige was mortified, staring at the being that easily dwarfed Sanctuary's raised outer gate. She quickly got behind the other- braver- woman instinctively, peeking out at the towering figure that used to be a tent. She felt a twinge of nostalgia that let her peek past the woman's shoulder. Moxxie took note of the reaction.

"Oh? So you too do know each other." Her demeanor immediately changed from amused to dead serious within moments "Then I'll let you decide whether or not Sanctuary will fall. I expect an answer by nightfall"

"Eh? Miss Moxxie, what do you mean? Hello?" Gaige's confused questions were answered with silence. She turned to the woman only to see her already at Sanctuary's raised gates. Moxxie turned to give the confused adolescent a smirk before…somehow…summersaulting over the three-meter high gates. "Umm, what just happened?"

"I see the deceptive manifestation brings the fruits forbidden to this garden. I futile gesture in a myriad of bloody vengeance." The voice was neither grating nor booming, it sounded just like her father. At first, she straightened in surprise, but then relaxed upon recognizing the manic way the words were spoken. It was Claptrap's Minion.

"I…see." Gaige didn't completely relax, despite gaining much trust from nurturing her back from death's doorstop along with Claptrap. She definitely trusted the somewhat idiotic little robot the accompanied her from the Wind-Shear Wastes, but she just wasn't ready for the other one yet. She just couldn't trust anyone who covered themselves, who obviously wouldn't even let their distinctive features be seen.

An uncomfortable silence pressed into the area. Gaige felt the intense urge to summon Death tarp to her side for a bit of solace, but thought further on it. Once summoned the advanced machine would be able to pick up her distress and identify the other being a hostile, initiating a conflict she really didn't need in such a tense atmosphere. Making up her mind, she decided that it wasn't worth it.

"The shade heals the hate, the sun lightens the embers, I creep under a wasted rock whilst exposed to the prejudices of freedom" Instead of dispersing the tension like any normal comment would, the rather morbid speech intensified the atmosphere by several magnitudes.

Gaige had nothing to respond to the comment, as she had no idea what it even meant! However, even if she had the chirpy little Claptrap as a translator, she doubted she could make anything but a few sentences under such high duress. Years of recluse for her chosen passion leaving her with little societal skills. She had to say something to dispel the anxiety building up in her belly, another nonsensical comment from the cloaked stranger would definitely make her do something irrational. Deciding to look around randomly, she thought she found something of potential use.

"Ah" Her voice was heavily strained, even to her own ears "Look, a shiny rock!"

The figure didn't respond, even as she forced herself to sound excited at spotting a rock that wasn't even all that distinguishable from the other rocks. The rock in question seemed to be only a meter away from both of them. Just another random pile of rubble. She could already imagine some of her own blood coating it as her imagination ran wild from the unbearable tension.

'_Shit! Minion isn't responding. I'm so getting tea-bagged for this in a few moments. I love you dad_!' A heartbeat after that thought, she saw glint of something metallic from within the robe, slowly tracing its way across whatever edge had caught the sunlight. It traced into a rather semi-circle. Her years of experience with tools as a Mechromancer telling her exactly what it was.

A claw that looked sharp enough to easily shred through armor laid hidden within those robes, ready to make fleshy ribbons out of her in an instant.

**A/N: Sorry this was very late, but it's here! Like the suspense? Think Gaige should have more **_**thoughts**_** or maybe it would be better to incorporate it into the paragraph directly? Let me know what you all think so I can make it more enjoyable for all of you! I don't mind nitpicking either, so come at me! HA HA HA!**

**Later.**


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